{"id":57201,"date":"2025-12-17T08:38:38","date_gmt":"2025-12-17T12:38:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/market-movers-wbd-backs-netflix-fed-sees-4-2-price-hike-general-mills-beats-estimates\/57201\/"},"modified":"2025-12-17T08:38:38","modified_gmt":"2025-12-17T12:38:38","slug":"market-movers-wbd-backs-netflix-fed-sees-4-2-price-hike-general-mills-beats-estimates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/market-movers-wbd-backs-netflix-fed-sees-4-2-price-hike-general-mills-beats-estimates\/57201\/","title":{"rendered":"Market Movers: WBD Backs Netflix, FED Sees 4.2% Price Hike, General Mills Beats Estimates"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_82_2 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 eztoc-toggle-hide-by-default' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/market-movers-wbd-backs-netflix-fed-sees-4-2-price-hike-general-mills-beats-estimates\/57201\/#Key_Takeaways\" >Key Takeaways<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/market-movers-wbd-backs-netflix-fed-sees-4-2-price-hike-general-mills-beats-estimates\/57201\/#Warner_Bros_Discovery_Favors_Netflix_Merger_Cites_Paramounts_%22Inferior%22_Offer\" >Warner Bros. Discovery Favors Netflix Merger, Cites Paramount&#39;s &quot;Inferior&quot; Offer<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/market-movers-wbd-backs-netflix-fed-sees-4-2-price-hike-general-mills-beats-estimates\/57201\/#FED_Survey_Signals_Persistent_Inflationary_Pressures_and_Dips_in_CFO_Optimism\" >FED Survey Signals Persistent Inflationary Pressures and Dips in CFO Optimism<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/market-movers-wbd-backs-netflix-fed-sees-4-2-price-hike-general-mills-beats-estimates\/57201\/#General_Mills_GIS_Beats_Wall_Street_Expectations_in_Q2_Earnings\" >General Mills (GIS) Beats Wall Street Expectations in Q2 Earnings<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/market-movers-wbd-backs-netflix-fed-sees-4-2-price-hike-general-mills-beats-estimates\/57201\/#UK_Government_Issues_Ultimatum_to_Roman_Abramovich_Over_25_Billion_Ukraine_Funds\" >UK Government Issues Ultimatum to Roman Abramovich Over \u00a32.5 Billion Ukraine Funds<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/market-movers-wbd-backs-netflix-fed-sees-4-2-price-hike-general-mills-beats-estimates\/57201\/#US_Mortgage_Rates_Edge_Up_UK_GDP_Disappoints\" >US Mortgage Rates Edge Up, UK GDP Disappoints<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Key_Takeaways\"><\/span>Key Takeaways<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Warner Bros. Discovery (<a href=\"\/stock\/WBD\">WBD<\/a>) has unanimously recommended shareholders reject Paramount Skydance&#39;s (<a href=\"\/stock\/PSKY\">PSKY<\/a>) offer, instead endorsing a merger with Netflix (<a href=\"\/stock\/NFLX\">NFLX<\/a>).<\/strong> The company cited &quot;material deficiencies&quot; and &quot;inadequate value&quot; in Paramount&#39;s proposal.<\/li>\n<li><strong>A recent FED survey indicates finance chiefs anticipate an average 4.2% price rise in 2026,<\/strong> even as overall and own-company optimism among CFOs dips.<\/li>\n<li><strong>General Mills (<a href=\"\/stock\/GIS\">GIS<\/a>) surpassed Q2 earnings expectations, reporting adjusted EPS of $1.10 and sales of $4.860 billion.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>The UK government has issued an ultimatum to Roman Abramovich, demanding he release \u00a32.5 billion for Ukraine or face legal action.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>US 30-year mortgage rates have climbed to 6.38%,<\/strong> while the UK&#39;s GDP continues to disappoint, with output falling despite expectations for a rebound.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Warner_Bros_Discovery_Favors_Netflix_Merger_Cites_Paramounts_%22Inferior%22_Offer\"><\/span>Warner Bros. Discovery Favors Netflix Merger, Cites Paramount&#39;s &quot;Inferior&quot; Offer<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Warner Bros. Discovery (<a href=\"\/stock\/WBD\">WBD<\/a>) is moving forward with its planned merger with Netflix (<a href=\"\/stock\/NFLX\">NFLX<\/a>), with the company&#39;s board unanimously recommending shareholders reject the competing offer from Paramount Skydance (<a href=\"\/stock\/PSKY\">PSKY<\/a>). In an SEC filing, WBD stated that Paramount&#39;s tender offer remains &quot;inferior&quot; and provides &quot;inadequate value,&quot; imposing &quot;numerous, significant risks and costs&quot; on WBD stockholders. The board also highlighted that Paramount &quot;has consistently misled&quot; WBD shareholders regarding a &quot;full backstop&quot; from the Ellison family.<\/p>\n<p>WBD&#39;s Board Chair, Samuel Di Piazza, confirmed that a shareholder vote on the preferred offer is expected sometime in the <em>Spring or early Summer<\/em>. Di Piazza also acknowledged that &quot;antitrust risk exists with both Netflix and Paramount offers,&quot; though WBD believes there is &quot;no material difference in regulatory risk&quot; between the two proposals. The company looks forward to moving ahead with the combination with Netflix.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"FED_Survey_Signals_Persistent_Inflationary_Pressures_and_Dips_in_CFO_Optimism\"><\/span>FED Survey Signals Persistent Inflationary Pressures and Dips in CFO Optimism<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>A recent Federal Reserve survey reveals that finance chiefs are bracing for continued inflationary pressures, projecting an average <strong>4.2% price rise in 2026<\/strong>. The survey, conducted from <em>November 11 to December 1<\/em> and including <strong>548 company executives<\/strong>, also indicated a decline in both overall and own-company optimism among Chief Financial Officers (CFOs). This outlook comes amid expectations of moderate job and economic growth, suggesting a cautious stance among corporate leaders regarding the economic landscape.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"General_Mills_GIS_Beats_Wall_Street_Expectations_in_Q2_Earnings\"><\/span>General Mills (<a href=\"\/stock\/GIS\">GIS<\/a>) Beats Wall Street Expectations in Q2 Earnings<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Food giant General Mills (<a href=\"\/stock\/GIS\">GIS<\/a>) reported stronger-than-expected results for its second quarter of fiscal year 2026. The company posted adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of <strong>$1.10<\/strong>, surpassing analyst estimates of <strong>$1.09<\/strong>. Sales for the quarter reached <strong>$4.860 billion<\/strong>, also exceeding the estimated <strong>$4.818 billion<\/strong>. General Mills&#39; operating profit stood at <strong>$728 million<\/strong>, with both gross margin and adjusted gross margin reported at <strong>34.8%<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"UK_Government_Issues_Ultimatum_to_Roman_Abramovich_Over_25_Billion_Ukraine_Funds\"><\/span>UK Government Issues Ultimatum to Roman Abramovich Over \u00a32.5 Billion Ukraine Funds<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>The UK government has intensified its pressure on Russian businessman Roman Abramovich, giving him a final opportunity to release <strong>\u00a32.5 billion<\/strong> from the sale of Chelsea Football Club to Ukraine or face legal action. The government stated it is &quot;fully prepared to take him to court if necessary&quot; should he fail to free the funds quickly. This move underscores the UK&#39;s determination to ensure the proceeds are directed towards humanitarian efforts in Ukraine.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"US_Mortgage_Rates_Edge_Up_UK_GDP_Disappoints\"><\/span>US Mortgage Rates Edge Up, UK GDP Disappoints<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>In economic news, the U.S. MBA 30-year mortgage rate has seen a slight increase, climbing to <strong>6.38%<\/strong> from the previous <strong>6.33%<\/strong>. This uptick could impact housing market activity and affordability for prospective homebuyers.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, the UK&#39;s economic performance continues to disappoint. Recent data showed that output fell despite expectations of a rebound following factory reopenings, indicating that growth remains weak. This comes as the government continues to frame growth as a core solution to economic challenges.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Key Takeaways Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) has unanimously recommended shareholders reject Paramount Skydance&#39;s (PSKY) offer, instead endorsing a merger with [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":50383,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"rank_math_schema_Article":[],"rank_math_focus_keyword":[],"rank_math_description":[],"financial_data_references":[],"stock_symbols_mentioned":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[5012],"tags":[5648,1807,5926,3709,9193,3829,15822,3860,15823,3886,4223,4824,5042,5423],"class_list":["post-57201","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-breaking-news","tag-mortgage-rates","tag-earnings","tag-netflix","tag-fed","tag-paramount","tag-ma","tag-general-mills","tag-wbd","tag-abramovich","tag-eps","tag-inflation","tag-geopolitics","tag-ukraine","tag-uk-economy"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57201","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57201"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57201\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50383"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57201"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=57201"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=57201"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}